The nomination period for Ottawa’s 2018 municipal election closes this Friday, and only 19 of the 90 registered candidates are women, as noted this week by Rick Gibbons.

“Why so few female candidates?” Mr. Gibbons asks, during a moment in which I imagine him dressed as Heath Ledger’s Joker character and asking, “Why so serious?”

Mr. Gibbons cannot actually be serious with this question. The barriers to women running for public office have been discussed ad nauseam since Donald Trump’s election in 2016. They range from a lack of affordable child-care options, as campaigning requires work during and outside of normal business hours, to a lack of social capital and inherent sexism in the political system since first-past-the-post favours incumbent candidates, who tend to be men. Throw in some sexist comments and death threats from social media, and it’s no wonder women aren’t knocking down doors to add their names to the ballot.

There is no doubt that gender parity on city council will lead to better policies for Ottawans because the views of all will be represented (this is also why city hall should have a Women’s Bureau). And absolutely the only way to increase parity is to have more women running for office in the first place. But simply pointing out this very obvious fact is failing to be critical of the system in place, the system that we have all had a part in creating.

The question we should all be asking is: How might we make it easier for women to run for political office?

Well Rick, I’m glad you asked. Here are just a few ideas:

1) Men need to be willing to take on a larger role when it comes to child-rearing. The reality is that women tend to be the primary caretakers of children. How many times have you heard your male colleague or friend say that they have to babysit their own child? If women can leave their kids at home with their partners, then they have the freedom to attend events, meet constituents and gain name recognition (which plays a key role in actually winning).

2) Make child care more affordable. Daycare in Ontario is among the most expensive in the country, with costs in Ottawa running around $1,540 per month. This lack of affordable child-care options can not only prevent women from re-entering the workforce after having a child at all, but also from running for public office. Yes, many Ottawans work for the federal government with good salaries and pensions, but in order to run for office these individuals need to take unpaid leave from work.

3) Stronger support systems. We have implicit biases that women are incapable of being strong political leaders. This is wrong! There must be women you know who are more than capable of running for office and executing that office in a professional and capable fashion. Women running for public office need strong support from everyone, including men. Men need to make space for women to run for office, but also be supportive and provide access to spaces typically occupied by men, particularly financial ones.

4) Making the choice to run for public office is not something that women take lightly. Feminist corners of the internet joke that women should “carry themselves with the confidence of a mediocre white man,” because, well, it’s true. We suffer from imposter syndrome and constantly feel like we need to be 10 times better than even the worst of our male competitors because so often the scales are inherently tipped in their favour.

So encourage your sister, colleague, neighbour, student or barista to run for public office – but also help her! I bet she’ll be great.

This Week's Flyers

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.